I love the posts people share in this penitent, but expectant time of the church year. I have recently re-tagged all of our posts shared in the past around Advent and Nativity. I invite you to share some of your own favorite blog posts in the comment section below that we may be mutually encouraged by one another’s faith.
Blessed and fruitful time to all in preparation our Our Lord Jesus Christ’s Nativity in human flesh!
First Day of the Nativity Fast
Commencement of Advent in the Orthodox Church
For the rest of the country,
Black Friday
I refuse to add to the growing litany of bloggers who want to end the atrocities of our over-driven consumerist culture. While I mostly agree with their criticisms, I don’t think it works to curse the darkness without lighting a candle. And the candle of prayer that I wish to light on this commencement of Holy Advent is a plug for a very potent service of prayer.
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Thanksgiving is a time for families to be together and thank God for everything. We play games and feast on fall food. God helps us in all our work. This year our family is very happy to be going to our grandparents house for Thanksgiving for the first time in years! Continue reading
There is a joke among recovering fundamentalist Christians. It goes, “Why is pre-marital sex so wrong? Because it might lead to dancing.” While most Christians can agree with the former prohibition against sex outside of marriage, the latter taboo has brought frustration to many a footloose Christian who begs for a definition of exactly what kind of dancing leads to moral degradation. As for this recovering fundamentalist, I have never been happier than the first time I witnessed centuries-old folk dancing going on right in the fellowship hall of an Eastern Orthodox church. You can even say it was one of the things that led me to the Church. Continue reading
Have you ever been so close to a whale that it can splash you in the face? Our family traveled to Gloucester on Columbus Day for a whale watch.
We drove to the harbor and boarded a ship named Miss Cape Ann. The ship zoomed into deep ocean and started looking for whales. The people were amazed when one of the passengers shouted, “THERE SHE BLOWS.” Off in the distance, two whales were spouting. Continue reading
New Movie on the Life of Rich Mullins
I first heard his music in a Christian bookstore back in the eighties when the only way to listen to new music was to sample it in the store or hear it in church. Christian Contemporary music (CCM) did not have the advantage of its secular counterpart: playtime on multiple radio stations, so songs and singers were far less known. Oh the hours I spent in my favorite Christian superstore looking for deep theological reflection and profound devotional commitment… mostly to no avail. More often what I heard was pop cultural leftovers, bands that were supposed to be the “Christian equivalent” of bands in the world, but were merely derivative and therefore inferior to what the world produced. I was lost in this sea of spin-off artistry, desperate to find an authentic voice, someone who did not have to imitate the world and sprinkle their lyrics with God-speak to sell records to gullible, culture-starved believers. And that’s when I heard Rich Mullins, who not only inspired me with his authentic witness for Christ, but showed me the way home into apostolic Christianity. Continue reading
Our family had the great fortune already this fall of attending two celebrations of the harvest with many more to come. The first was a long-standing tradition we have had of going with St. Herman Christian School to our favorite fruit farm in Northborough, MA. The second was a new tradition that we intend to repeat with my parents who now live in the area: the yearly harvest of the largest producer of cranberries in the world, right here in New England! Continue reading
Want to share this link for those who might be interested in seeing my talk on the big screen. I shared an audio version and written version of my talk previously. Now if you wish, for a few well spent bucks, you can see it in living color! Just click on the link below for me and many other amazing speakers. I recommend especially Socrates Meets Jesus.
For our annual back-to-school post, I would like to highlight a new homeschool program we have joined that has brought back great memories for me of learning things by heart when I was a young man. Congratulations to all students on the commencement of a new academic year, and kali dynami or good strength to all in your studies!
Finish this verse: “Watch that wobble, see that wiggle…”
“Cool and fruity, jello brand gellatin…”
If you could complete this little ditty or many others like it without even thinking about it, you have become an unconscious evangelist for a marketing campaign. And if we are so good at unconscious proselytizing for products, could we not consciously put to memory songs and words which ennoble our souls and not just fatten our bodies? Continue reading
Mount Rushmore, a monument located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, stands for America’s liberty and justice for all. Continue reading
Like Mendicant Monks... 